Das Problem der verschwiegenen Arisierung jüdischen Eigentums in der zeitgeschichtlichen KJL – Zu Mirjam Presslers Jugendroman "Die Zeit der schlafenden Hunde" (2003)

Abstract

Expropriation of Jewish property in the Nazi era and dealing with criminal history of the family by its descendants constitute the pivot of the young-adult novel "Die Zeit der schlafenden Hunde" (Let Sleeping Dogs Lie) by Mirjam Pressler. A confrontation with a Jewish victim of the expropriation induces the adolescent protagonist to expose the truth about the acquisition of the family business by her grandfather in the course of Aryanization. The issue is refreshed in the process of remembering and presented from two different perspectives: the one of the perpetrator and the one of the victim. The paper examines how the issue is dealt with taking into consideration the specifics of children’s and youth literature. The context of current affairs is also considered, as well as how, owing to the modern manner in which complex images at various time levels are presented, verisimilitude is achieved concerning the processes occurring in the main protagonist’s mind.

Keywords

• Expropriation in the Nazi era and rectification
• settlement with the past
• victim and perpetrator
• detachment from parents
• modern manner of narration in young-adult fiction